


Clouds

by remanth



Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: Clouds, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Picnic, mystrade
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-21
Updated: 2013-10-21
Packaged: 2017-12-30 00:44:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,303
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1012021
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/remanth/pseuds/remanth
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Greg and Mycroft enjoy a day to themselves looking up at the sky.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Clouds

It was a warm, sunny day and Greg Lestrade was spending it in the grass of his backyard. He was lying on his back staring up at the clouds. No murders were happening, no kidnappings, nothing to disturb the perfect calm of his day off. Of course, it would be a better day had he not been completely by himself but Mycroft was working today. Then again, Mycroft had significantly more power than he would ever admit and it amused Greg greatly. Sometimes, you needed the right person to make sure everything kept running smoothly and that person tended to be Mycroft. He’d left early that morning after a whispered call and a quick kiss for the still-half-asleep Greg.

So Greg had finally gotten out of bed a few hours later, smiling at the birdsong that came in through the open windows. After cooking a leisurely breakfast of bacon, eggs, and toast, he’d wandered out to their backyard with a book and a blanket. Though the book hadn’t kept his attention for long as interesting clouds drifted past overhead. Now, it was about two hours later and Greg was still amusing himself by naming shapes.

“That one’s a fish,” Greg murmured, turning his head slightly as one cloud floated directly over him. It’s fins were slowly dissolving away as the cloud moved and, before it had passed by completely, the cloud changed into a hot-air balloon. Greg grinned as it floated out of his line of sight and let his eyes wander across the sky. Unfortunately, it was mostly clear blue as the sun shone down into his eyes. “Suppose I should try reading again.”

Picking up the book, Greg found his bookmark and started reading. This one had been on his to-read list for about a year now. His job just usually left him little free time. And what free time he did get, Greg preferred to spend with his daughter or Mycroft. It had taken his daughter a long time to forgive him after he divorced her mother but she had finally moved on. Of course, the divorce was, at least on the surface, Greg’s fault since he instigated it. Yet, it was truly his wife’s fault when Greg could no longer turn a blind eye to her affairs. He would never tell his daughter, though. Her relationship with her mother was still good and Greg didn’t want to change that. Even after all this, he loved his ex-wife. Though it was more the love of a friend than a husband now.

It had taken Greg just as long to get over his divorce as it took for his daughter to forgive him. He’d been married for a long time, had loved her even in school. Walking around in a daze for about a month had affected his work but, after a heartfelt conversation with Sally Donovan, Greg had managed to get his head straight. Sherlock had been surprisingly patient with the whole thing, though that was probably John’s influence. Though Sherlock had drawn the line at repeating his deductions. Not even John could convince him to be that kind.

Another cloud drifted across the sun, darkening the area around Greg. There was a slight drop in temperature and Greg looked up at the cloud. It was a white fluffy one and looked a little bit like a sheep. Dropping his book onto his chest again, Greg hooked one arm behind his head and watched the fluffy cloud travel. It kept it's shape fairly well and soon was hidden behind a roof. There were more clouds in the sky now and the book lay forgotten as Greg let his imagination run wild.

“And that one looks like a hammer,” Greg laughed quietly to himself. “Maybe Thor lost it.”

“If he did, he’s going to have a long trip to get it back,” Mycroft’s voice came from the doorway. Greg sat up and smiled at the other man, beckoning him to come out. Mycroft walked into the yard and settled down on the blanket next to Greg. Slinging an arm over Greg’s shoulders, Mycroft pulled him in for a kiss before looking up at the sky. “Is this what you’ve been doing all day? Making shapes from clouds?”

“It’s been a lazy day,” Greg laughed, leaning against Mycroft’s side. “Not often I get one of these. And what about you? The government problem solved?”

“Maybe not solved but I managed to put a band-aid on it,” Mycroft replied, pursing his lips thoughtfully. “Solved is probably going to have to wait about a year. But once the elections are over... Anyway, I was able to finish quickly and I thought you might like to have lunch with me. Unless your clouds are more interesting, of course.”

“Well, you know, they come in so many different shapes,” Greg said thoughtfully, holding a serious face for a few seconds before laughing. “I was about to make lunch for myself anyway. How about this time, we have lunch here, out in the backyard? I can make sandwiches and we’ve got some lemonade Sophie made the other day.”

“Are you proposing a picnic, Greg?” Mycroft asked, chuckling quietly. When Greg nodded Mycroft continued, “You know, I’ve never been on a picnic. It wasn’t really something my family ever did. It could be fun.”

“Yes, it could,” Greg agreed, leaning over and pressing a kiss to Mycroft’s lips. “You stay here, I’ll get lunch. We already have the blanket and you can do some cloud watching.”

Greg got up with only a slight groan, ignoring the pain in his lower back. While he was still in decent shape, his body wasn’t twenty anymore. Sitting on the ground, or laying on the ground, for extended periods of time wasn’t something he could take lightly anymore. But the pain worked itself out on the walk into the house where Greg started putting together a picnic lunch. He regretted the lack of a basket for a few seconds then shrugged. It didn’t need to have every hallmark of a picnic, after all. Piling sandwiches and a bag of crisps on a tray, Greg pulled the lemonade out of the fridge and two glasses from the cupboards. Then, walking carefully because the tray was heavy, Greg headed back outside.

Mycroft had settled back with his head pillowed on his forearms. He was watching the clouds, a slight smile on his face. There was something of awe and wonder in his eyes, like a child just discovering something fascinating for the first time. It made Greg wonder how often Mycroft took a moment to just enjoy free time. Knowing Mycroft, the answer was probably almost never. Greg set the tray down, only spilling a little bit of lemonade as he did so. Mycroft sat up and started filling the glasses while Greg opened the bag of crisps.

“So what did you see in the sky?” Greg asked as he ate a crisp. He took the glass Mycroft handed him and took a sip out of it, smiling at the taste. It was perfect, exactly how he liked his lemonade.

“I saw a lot of things,” Mycroft replied thoughtfully, glancing back up. “There were fences and dragons and even a butterfly. I should do this more often. It’s remarkably soothing.”

Greg nodded his agreement and started eating his sandwich. While they ate, they pointed out interesting clouds to each other and stole kisses between bites. It was a wonderful lunch and Greg made a mental note to do this again. It was nice to see Mycroft without the weight of his responsibilities on his shoulders. And since it was a day they both, now, had free, Greg felt no guilt at spending the rest of the afternoon in the yard looking up at clouds.


End file.
